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My telephone pinged with a text message.
Investors need to reschedule. Can we meet in the afternoon?
That actually worked just fine for me. I’d been a bit annoyed that the real estate agent had pushed for the soft opening as a way to impress the investors, because I hadn’t wanted to work on Lia’s big night. They’d been insistent, so I had acquiesced, and now I was being let off the hook. I stood and stretched, needing to take a break from the paperwork, and walked out into the back garden. The cottage was set against a small burn, which made a lovely trickling sound as the water rushed by, and birds swooped to its bank to peck at the grass.
Did I really need or want investors? Common Gin had grown well on its own, without any outside investments, and I’d taken great pride in paying off my business loan. But this? This could be a leveling-up moment. When the opportunity had presented itself last week, I knew I had to at least entertain their offer. If I worked with investors, Common Gin might be able to go global in a way that I couldn’t achieve on my own. What they were offering was more than just me opening another distillery in little Loren Brae, it was an opportunity to become a household name worldwide. This would be the penultimate step in my career and could potentially far exceed what my parents had achieved with their whisky. While their brand was one of prestige, you had to be educated in the history of whisky to truly appreciate it, which made their market narrower than mine. With this step, I could finally show them that I’d known what I was doing all along. That I was good enough. That I wasbetterthan them.
That was the crux of it all along, wasn’t it? For some reason, I was beginning to understand that I no longer truly needed their approval. Somewhere along the way, that little boy’s desire for their love had turned to anger, and that anger had fueled the need to show them up. At times, it had been the only thing keeping me going in getting Common Gin to the success it now had. The thing was, now that I had it all? I wasn’t sure I wanted to be angry anymore. I didn’t need it to fuel me. Maybe it was because I’d realized that I genuinely loved what I did for a living, and with that, I didn’t need any other justification for me to work hard.
I rubbed at a spot at my chest, my thoughts tumbling around, as I thought about Loren Brae, about what Lia was building here, and whatIwanted to build here. I thought about what my life would look like if I took Common Gin global. The demands on my time would triple. It was hard to say if it would be worth it or not. Not when I was also growing something here.
A grasshopper leapt from the ground and pinged off my shin before landing a few feet away from me on the patio. We regarded each other solemnly for a moment before it bounced wildly to the left and back into the grass.
Epiphany by way of a grasshopper.
That was certainly a new one.
My phone rang, drawing me back inside, and I steeled myself when I saw my mother’s name on the screen.
“Mother.”
“Munroe. You’ll accompany us for dinner tonight at the castle.”
There was nohelloor asking how I was doing. It was always the same with them. They ordered, and I followed. However, in this case, it might cause more issues if I went to Lia’s dinner and didn’t sit with them. I didn’t want to cause Lia any distress on her big night, and at the very least, if I was at their table, I could run interference if they were difficult with the waiter.
“Can’t wait!” I said, infusing cheerfulness into my voice.
“We’ll meet you there at six.”
With that, she hung up, and I scrubbed my hands over my face. Glancing at the time, I reasoned I could get another solid hour’s worth of work in before I had to get ready. Setting a timer, in case I lost track, I dug into the pile of paperwork in front of me so I could have a clear head for the evening. I couldn’t wait to see Lia shine tonight.
Later, I pulled up to the castle, pleased to see cars already arriving. The soft opening had been the talk of Loren Brae and I hoped everything went perfectly and exactly as Lia wanted. Driving around the private side of the castle, I parked my car by Lachlan’s and got out, a flurry of barking greeting me.
“Well, now, aren’t you a fine gentleman then?” I asked, bending to reach a hand out to Sir Buster, done up in his kilt. “We’re matching this evening, good sir.”
I’d dressed up in my kilt, as Lachlan and Graham would be wearing theirs, and it appeared Sir Buster had been ordered to do so as well. Lady Lola followed, a tartan bow at her neck, which she immediately ruined by flopping over on her back when she saw me.
“Hilda’s going to be mad at you for messing up your bow,” I lectured Lola as I scratched the happy puppy’s stomach.
“She already is. Every time I turn around, she’s trying to tear the bow off,” Hilda said as she approached with a disapproving look on her face. She wore an elegant black dress, with a pretty thistle pin at her collar.
“Don’t you look nice,” I said, dropping a kiss to her cheek.
“You’re looking quite smart yourself,” Hilda said, holding me back and looking me up and down. “I like that tartan.”
“Thanks, we lucked out with our colors.” Not all clan tartans were a pleasing pattern, but the Curaigh tartan sported black, red, and gray. “I just wanted to pop my head in and wish Lia good luck. Or is it too busy?”
“No, I think that would be grand. Walk me around? Archie’s already over there fussing with something or other.”
“Happy to.” I held out my arm, and we strolled along the path that wound around the side of the castle, the dogs following at our heels. “I’m meeting my parents here.”
“Hmm.” Hilda sniffed, and I grinned.
“Not a fan?”
“Well, now, I don’t wish to speak ill of others, so I won’t be saying anything about that.” Hilda nodded across to where Loch Mirren reflected the early evening light on its still waters. “Kelpies have been acting up again. Maybe it’s because your parents are here.”
“Wouldn’t that be something?” I pursed my lips. “Run them right out of town, that’s for sure.”
